


Things Not to be Thrown Away

by Anonymous



Category: The West Wing
Genre: F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2004-01-25
Updated: 2004-01-25
Packaged: 2019-05-30 14:37:34
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,174
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15098750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: CJ gets Leo out of the office late one night and their relationship grows.





	Things Not to be Thrown Away

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

**Things not to be thrown away**

**by:** Loz

**Pairing(s):** CJ/Leo   
**Rating:** ADULT   
**Summary:** CJ gets Leo out of the office late one night and their relationship grows.  
 **Disclaimer(s):** It should be painfully obvious I have no ownership of the characters I write here.  
**Spoiler:** Setting in/about/around/after SGTESGTJ  
 **Feedback:** The good, the bad and the very ugly it's all appreciated.   
**Author's Note:** None 

CJ walks the darkened halls of the West Wing for one last time that day. Josh, Toby and Sam's offices are empty, the usually bustling bullpens silent.

This is the last thing she has to do for the night before she can go a few blocks down the road to her favorite all night diner. She doesn't have to finish it now; it has to be on Leo's desk by tomorrow. Perhaps now, baring an emergency she can allow herself the luxury of 10 extra minutes sleep.

Her intention is to leave the position paper on Margaret's desk, but as she approaches the outer office she realizes he's still here.

Only his desk lamp remains on, like Margaret had packed up around him hours ago and gone home. His glasses sit low on the bridge of his nose as he leans back reading.

"I used to think I could achieve something at 1 am as well."

He looks up surprised to see her, confused at what she is saying and wondering how she got so far into his office without him hearing her.

"Then I learnt that if you wake a reporter or an editor at this time it'll come back to bite you in the future...for you..." CJ holds out that which she has come to give Leo.

"The Organization of Cartographers for social equity." It had been Big Block of Cheese day.

"What does it say?"

"It says I haven't been living where I thought I was and Germany isn't where we thought it was."

"How about Indian and Pakistan?"

"Nope, their maps freak me out Leo."

"Unless we find India and Pakistan, they're freaking me out too."

CJ smiles warmly and bids him goodnight, as she is about to exit the room she turns to look at him again.

"Leo I discovered this great little diner down a couple of blocks, it's open 24 hours, real inconspicuous, nice secluded area in the back if you don't want to be recognized, healthy and greasy food. I haven't eaten and I bet you haven't either, I'd be glad of the company."

"Thanks CJ, but I was just going to go home...."

"Go home and not sleep, do more work, change your shirt and come back into work again in a couple of hours."

He stares at her wide-eyed for a minute, removing his glasses

"How did you know?"

"Women's intuition."

"Ugghhh." He groans in reply, he's been busted.

"You're an open book Leo, what difference can you make at 1am?" It's what Jenny had said to him in the past.

"CJ."

"They start serving breakfast at 2." She entices.

"I'm coming." He grimaces grabbing his jacket and flicking out the last light.

~*~

"Is it not the strangest thing that two people can work in the same building day in day out, one is the others boss and have nothing to talk about?" CJ swirls the straw in her imported lemon, lime and bitters drink.

"I'm not comfortable with the boss thing." Leo returns.

"You're the White House Chief of Staff, you think there might be a problem there?" she laughs

"You do your job, I do mine, we work as a team and the country keeps running." Leo shrugs.

"That's a very simplistic ideal Leo."

"Let's not talk about the office CJ." His voice drops and suddenly he sounds tired.

"We don't have much else in common." CJ replies similarly as their meals arrive.

"Did you see Danny on TV last night?" Leo's eyes light up and his whole body lifts.

"He embarrassed himself Leo, don't mention it, it's a touchy subject." CJ bounces to life herself, she seems to feed off Leo's sudden improvement in mood.

~*~

Leo made it easy, there were no expectations for the end of the night and he was as willing to listen, as she was to talk. CJ found it impossible not to open up, not to laugh when he told her Leo and Jed stories from before the White House. He laughed along with her, listened as she spoke and argued with her when he thought she was wrong, but was gentleman enough not to tell her she was.

~*~

As she goes to order another drink CJ's eyes caressed the clock on the wall.

"Oh my god Leo, it's 2:45." She says shocked at just how fast time had gone by.

He raises his hand in reply, signaling for the waitress to bring over the bill.

"Where are you?" Leo asks as they stand outside fixing coats and scarves.

"I'm about 5 blocks that way." CJ points in front of them.

"But you're taking a cab right."

"No, it doesn't take long to get home,"

"CJ!" Leo puts on that do-you-think-that's-a-wise-idea tone.

"It's 3am Leo, it's the quietest time in the city."

"So all the murderers and rapists and robbers take a cat-nap while you stroll home in the freezing cold, I'm walking with you."

"It's not necessary Leo."

"I think it is."

"Leo I ride the life cycle to Belgium once a week, you understand I could out run these people, Belgium being a whole other country you understand."

"I know and I also know you could probably defend yourself better than I could defend you, but I'll feel better if I walk with you." 

"I'll call *you* a cab from my place."

"You do this every night CJ?" Leo falls into pace with her.

"3 times a week, besides, who's to say I wouldn't get into trouble in a D.C cab?" she grins across at him.

~*~

"This is me." CJ points to the extraordinarily ugly block of apartments she calls home, of course inside they're testimony to nothing less than fabulous taste, she often wonders what the architect was on when the outside was designed.

"Thank you for ensuing my safe passage home." Her lemon, lime and bitters had made her exactly the opposite.

"You want to come up and call a cab?" she points to the top floor apartment.

"I've got..." Leo pulls out his phone and began to dial.

"I'll wait with you." She whispers softly as he orders a cab to come pick him up.

"Did you see Jay Leno last night?" they sit shoulder-to-shoulder waiting for the cab to arrive.

"It's all in good humor CJ."

"He could lay off once in a while,"

"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery CJ." They both watched as the yellow car pulls up in front of her building.

"See you in a couple of hours CJ." She watches as the cab pulls away from the curb and the lights disappeared into the night.

~*~

That was Monday, CJ spent all of Tuesday fielding questions about welfare as every front page of newspapers across America prepared to display homeless and poverty statistics from a new report.

By 11:30pm she'd finished reading the report, which at 300 pages, would be summarized into a small fact file column accompanying a front-page article. It shouldn't be that way she thought, at least having read it she was ready to comment on the White House's position regarding the report.

CJ took comfort in the fact she wasn't alone tonight, she knew Toby was still here, homelessness had become an issue near to his heart, especially veterans.

Sighing heavily, glad to be heading home, she packs up her office for the night. CJ lets out a yelp when her eyes glaze over Leo standing in her doorway.

"Didn't mean to scare you." He grins.

"How long have you been standing there?" CJ asks concerned she hadn't heard his approach.

"Not long, were you doing or saying something you didn't want anyone to hear?"

"No, I ah was just thinking..."

"That if I can sneak up on you in the White House then you shouldn't be walking home at night alone anymore, regardless of how many power walks to Belgium you've done."

"Smartarsery from the White House Chief of Staff." She puts the last of her folders in her bag.

"Smartarsery CJ, is that even a word?"

"It is now." She picks up her bag to leave. "What can I do for you Leo?"

"A friend showed me this great little diner a couple of blocks away, I haven't eaten yet and I'd be glad of the company..."

"There you go again."

"They serve breakfast at 2." He teases.

"I don't usually go Tuesday nights."

"You do now."

"I guess I do." She flips the light switch and they leave the building together.

~*~

"CJ don't mention to The President that we've met twice in a tacky diner in the back booth." He slides across the red plastic seats.

"You think he'll conclude a sordid affair?"

"It'll just remind him of Rosslyn, they apprehended the guy outside his Head Quarters diner and he's wanted to nuke the place every night since."

"There's nothing tacky about this place, Paulo the head cook says I'm the most beautiful face of the White House."

"He's right." what follows is an awkward silence, but not so that the two can't draw their eyes from each other.

"Thank you." CJ says softly.

"We should go, I'll walk you home."

CJ walks next to Leo in silence with only her thoughts. He's a lovely man, his face testimony to the roller coaster his life had been. He is soft and gentle, yet commanding when required. There's something oddly soothing about his distinctive craggy voice. He's poised despite some of the undignified paths in life he had walked down. He's single, lives alone and he works a job with hours like her.

"Leo this is me." CJ stops outside the front steps to her apartment, somewhere else Leo had kept walking.

"Sorry I was lost in thought." he stumbles.

CJ secretly hopes it was she, the more time she spent with him, and the more respect she gained for him and the more she liked him.

"You want to come upstairs while you wait for a cab?" he stands on the step above hers, committing every inch of her face to memory.

"I want to, so I don't think I should." he speaks softly, eyes lingering on hers.

"You should call then." CJ lets her eyes drop to the step under her feet.

As Leo goes for his phone in his jacket breast pocket CJ's young neighbor arrives home, she works 3 jobs and sleeps less than CJ to be able to live in the area. Leo makes his way to the cab, and asks the driver to wait as he places his bag on the back seat.

He grins over at her as he climbs back to the high step and lightly pressed his lips on her cheek.

"Goodnight CJ."

For the second time that week she watched the taillights disappear into the night. Except this time there was a spring in her step as she made her way to her front door with a secret smile on her face.

~*~

On Wednesday around the same time CJ went through the same ritual as Monday, only this time she was surprised to see Margaret still working.

"He's keeping you late?" she asks pleasantly despite the obvious nature of the answer to her question.

"You can go in, but I warn you on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the best and 1 being the worst, his mood is a -5."

"That good huh!" CJ declares

"Enter at your own peril." Margaret replies airily.

"You're fast approaching the hours of not being able to make a difference." CJ stands in front of his desk.

"I'm not there yet."

"Your assistant is fast approaching disliking you."

"She'll get over it, she always does."

"One day she won't." CJ says trying to keep it light.

"I can't come tonight CJ." His tone changes to let her know he was busy and she's disrupting him.

"Well it's Wednesday, so I'm going to go anyway, so I'll see you tomorrow."

"CJ" he calls softly after her as she's almost out of his office, she turns back to give him her attention.

"Catch a cab home would you."

Her only reply was a cheeky grin.

~*~

After her customary flirt with Paulo the head cook (He was nowhere near a chef, though he did make the nicest pasta salad) and a near miss vomit at his sleaziness CJ settles into her regular booth.

And although she's sat here alone many times before and only twice with Leo, it feels wrong that he isn't here. Perhaps she had felt heartened by last nights beautiful comment and the goodnight peck, only to be seemingly abandoned tonight.

Thoughts mingle in her head characteristic of the mingling colors in her lemon lime and bitters as she swirls her straw around.

"This seat taken?" a familiar voice asks.

"You sent Margaret home?" she looks up smiling, hoping it isn't too obvious she was glad to see him.

"Turns out you were wrong and I had to push her out the door."

"Now the truth Leo."

"I couldn't trust you to take a cab home." She smiles warmly.

"Leo." She says in her playful warning tone.

"You were right, I passed the time where it was possible for me to do anything."

~*~

"Do you think we make a difference?" CJ asks as they walk towards her apartment.

"I see it as each day being a brick I in the wall, in a wall to something, a better country, a better life for it's citizens. The longer we're here the more we can build and perhaps even the next administration will like the ground work we've done, so the wall won't be knocked down only to be started all over again in a different shade of brick. So the wall gets bigger and we hopefully get closer to something."

"Rome wasn't built in a day."

"And neither is this country."

"How did you get so wise?"

"Well it wasn't from too many Martini's or pills, it was when I stopped taking them."

"I didn't mean to bring that up." CJ has a look on her face, which publicizes her own perceived stupidity as she stops outside her apartment block.

"It's Ok CJ, I can talk about it. It's not a part of my life I'm proud of, but I can talk about it."

"You wanna..." CJ nods her head in the direction of the apartment blocks front doors.

"It's not a good idea CJ." There's an element to his voice, which tells her he really does want to go through the doors despite what words came out.

Impulsively CJ makes her move, bending her head down, moving closer to him, tilting her head as their lips inch closer. Just as she thought they were going to collide he hastily looks down and pulled away.

"I've got to go." He says backing away.

"Don't you need a cab?" she asked at a loss to explain his behavior.

"I only live 2 streets over, it's fine I'll walk." He calls over his shoulder.

That Wednesday night CJ watched as Leo disappeared into the night. All this time she never knew he lived so close, the man has more layers than an onion and she wondered what else she didn't know.

~*~

Thursday night they met halfway in the corridors of the West Wing. They looked at each other for a moment before CJ speaks.

"Leo you shouldn't feel obligated to come with me to the diner if you don't want to, if it makes you feel better I promise to get a cab home."

"I don't fell obligation, I enjoy the company of intelligent, beautiful women and I enjoy fine food."

"You were doing so well till you said fine food. Any credibility you had just got shot down."

"Credibility has been lost by me by doing worse things." He shrugs.

"It's Mexican night tonight." CJ tells him as they walk out.

"Great I'll have 10 grams of illegal drugs, a side of illegal immigrants and a couple of shots of tequila all wrapped up in a burrito."

"That's the spirit." She laughs.

~*~

"Leo did you know there are 100 million people living in Mexico currently?"

"Does that include the ones who've got across our borders?" CJ smiles across at him at his sarcasm.

"They have two hundred thousand people in the armed forces."

"We could still take them."

"They have an 89% literacy rate."

"They speak Spanish, what do I care."

"Their President is elected for a 6 year term."

"Now that's unfair."

"Indeed."

"CJ please tell me you're not reading trivia facts from a placemat in a tacky D.C diner run by Italians."

"I am in fact not."

"I find that hard to believe."

"As one of our closest neighbors I feel obligated to keep myself up to date on all that is Mexico and in turn ensure the press gets the correct information."

"I should not ever question your ability to handle the press." He maintains.

"You're a very wise man Leo." CJ teases.

"I know this."

"That you do." CJ confirms as their meals are placed in front of them.

"You had a good day today." Leo says out of the blue, their walk home, silent till then.

"I proved Josh wrong, I shouted Toby down and when I told Sam it would work it did, and I've finished work and am on my way home before midnight."

"And not once did you say I was right."

"I'm a professional Leo, and I've also made my fair share of stupid mistakes in my time. It is to no ones benefit to have salt rubbed into wounds, you fix it and move on."

"How did you get so wise?" Leo repeats the question CJ had asked him only nights before.

"Working for you." A comfortable silence descends over them again till they arrive at the front steps

"One night I'm going to have to walk you home?" she teases.

"That'd be nice." He responds softly.

Just as she had proposed a different way to end their evenings, Leo took control of the way this one was about to end much to CJ's delight. Moving to his higher step position so they would be face to face, illustration of their positions in the White House hierarchy, he reached out his hand to run his hands down her hair on the left side, and lightly caress her cheek, and just as she thought he was going to lean away he moved in closer.

For one mystical moment CJ thought they were going to engage in a 'date' goodnight kiss he pulled away again.

"Goodnight." He says walking down her front steps.

For a moment she watches him go, part frustrated and confused at his nightly actions. Each night he came to the diner with her and had a nice time, but at the end of the night when things might go further he pulls out all stops.

You don't do that to women, well not this woman. CJ wasn't being led on; she thought he just needed some encouragement.

"Leo!" she spins him around by his shoulder, pulling him in by his tie till he is right where she wants him and moves one hand to his jacket lapel, all the while her lips glued to his in a kiss, who said women couldn't do multiple things at once.

She forces her tongue into his mouth, like breaking through the front door to his apartment, she puts every kiss she's been deprived off the past couple of nights into this one and CJ doesn't stop till she gets a moan of approval from him.

CJ ends her kiss by bringing him in closely and then pulling suddenly and sharply away, making the desired, well-what-do-you-think-of-that statement. Her face is flushed and her lips pulsing with heat, the best bit is he is exactly the same.

"How is it that the Chief of Staff in the Bartlet administration, who plays hardball with the Russian ambassador to his country, won't kiss a girl he's clearly attracted to and has had dinner with for the last couple of night, goodnight at her front door."

"The Russian ambassador hits on me in my office." He fumbles.

"So I hit on you on my front step and you refuse to come upstairs and you say...."

"It's not a good idea CJ."

"That's it, there you go again."

"It's complicated."

"But it's not just a Chief of Staff - Press Secretary thing is it?" she had an inkling this is true.

"No," and she's right.

"I like you Leo and you like me and if it's not about our jobs, what is it?"

"Can we talk, tomorrow night about this, somewhere?" he takes her hand in his, his thumb stroking the back of her hand.

"You know I had to do this, the average life expectancy for a female in Mexico is 75, I would have been dead before you made a move." He smirks at her, walking backwards down the path towards his apartment.

"Tomorrow night." He reminds her before turning in the right direction.

For the fourth night CJ watches him till he was engulfed in the darkness of the night and this time she practically ran all the way up to her top floor apartment.

~*~

The first thing CJ notices on Friday in the staff meeting was that Leo was wearing a nice suit, he's always worn tailor made suits, but this one was, to quote another great mind "A Joey Lucas suit. Not his regular Friday suit."

Her stomach did small flips at the thought he might be wearing it for her. Then she tells herself she's acting like a 16 year old and pushes any or all similar thoughts from her mind.

That night as she watches Jay Leno in her office there's was a soft knock at the door. Her eyes didn't move from the screen as she yells come in to the person on the other side of the door.

"Are you watching this?" she points incredulously to the TV.

"No."

"I'm laughing and I shouldn't be, but I am."

"CJ don't worry about it, you can bet the President is upstairs laughing at it as well."

"That's the worst part."

"Are you going to leave this office tonight?"

"I can make a lot of difference still."

"Not to a show that was pre-recorded at 2:30 this afternoon."

"I wish everyone knew President Bartlet like I did." She sighs turning off the TV.

~*~

"That's a nice suit you're wearing." CJ comments as they make their way to the diner.

"Thank you, I had a meeting with the Russian ambassador today." A wave of horror passes through her body; he was flirting with his new suit with the Russian ambassador.

She keeps herself facing straight ahead daring not to let Leo see the expression on her face, had she turned though she would have noticed that he couldn't help but grin at his little misdirection.

"I wore it for you." He grasps her wrist, to stop her from walking as he faces her to tell the truth.

She smiles at him, behind her eyes her brain that was feeding the smile tells her, 'he has a CJ Cregg suit.'

~*~

Paulo doesn't flirt with her at the counter that night, he isn't stupid, he notices from the kitchen as she orders and he sees Leo's hand meander to the small of her back. She pretends to take no notice, but is secretly very pleased.

CJ lets him pay for her meal and watches captivated as he waits for her to sit before sliding in next to her, instead of across from her.

And outside once they've both struggled into two extra layers of clothing he takes her hand in his and interlocks their fingers.

"You going to ask me up?" They stand on the same step in front of CJ's apartment, a sign their relationship has changed?

"I was going to, but then I thought I'd do this first." CJ takes a step down till they are of equal height again.

The message in this kiss this time is softer as if thanking him for giving her a go. CJ runs her hands across the back of his neck and up through his thinning sandy hair. She breaks gently away from him not moving her arms intending fully to go back in again for another, instead she closes her eyes and breathes a contented sigh.

"That good huh!" he jokes, she simply takes his hand and lead him through the doors of her apartment.

CJ flicks her keys in the elevator so it will go all the way to the top floor and open straight into her apartment. The expanse before them is instantaneously bathed in light, when CJ flips on the light. It seems to be a separated studio apartment, the kitchen, living, dining and study are all one room, and he can only assume that the bedroom and bathroom are behind the wall that the TV is next to.

"Lots of space." His voice echoes slightly, bouncing off the hardwood floors and expansive windows.

"Impossible to heat." She sighs dejectedly as she pulls close the curtain and switches on some near by lamps. The place is almost cozy once she turns off the overhead lights.

"Coffee?" she offers dropping her coat on the stand as she makes her way into the kitchen.

"Yes please."

"Flat white?" she guesses.

"Long black." He has a lot of explaining to do.

He watches transfixed as she works her home cappuccino machine like her day job was at the local café

"I think you missed your calling." He jokes when she hands him his cup.

"It's the best relationship I've ever had, perks me up in the morning, it's here when I come home at night and it never lets me down."

"Sounds ideal." He lets his eyes stray over it.

"It's been with me 5 years and we haven't argued yet, or thought of tossing it away." She realizes the implication of arguing and tossing away and Leo and Jenny after she's said it. She can't believe it is possible that someone in her job who meticulously says the right thing everyday could have been so careless just then. So she tells him that in an apology.

"It's your house CJ, you can say what you feel."

"I didn't mean it, it was an unfortunate co-incidence."

"I know that." He looks up at her from his coffee.

"Sit with me and I'll tell you about the men I've discarded in my life and you'll laugh and feel better about yourself." He sits and listens to her short and not so illustrious career with men.

"Tad Whitney was my last, almost 6 years ago now." She sighs wistfully and he laughs as she tries to appear upset about the break.

"He gave me the cappuccino machine and I gave him the flick, I got the better deal." She laughs and then gets serious.

"I've never pursued anything with anyone I didn't think was worthwhile or was going to go somewhere or be good for either of us."

She turns her head still resting on the back of the lounge to look across at him.

"Am I scaring you?...I just believe if you can't laugh at your mistakes then..."

"I'm not there yet." He replies softly.

She nods in understanding and can't pull away from the sadness in his eyes.

"I can't laugh at 35 years yet."

They're silent for a long time, both considering what they have gotten into or were about to.

"I wanted to tell you something's, to explain something's." he leans forward and takes her hand.

"I've been telling you this...us isn't a good idea." She nods for him to continue.

"It's not because of our jobs, our positions, or because of me ex-wife, we're divorced, we've moved on and Mallory is older so while she's still a tie for us, she's not a large one."

"I understand." She nods again; she wants to let him have the floor uninterrupted.

"I was saying this wasn't a good idea because I didn't want to start something I couldn't finish." And now she doesn't understand.

"You know that I kept it a secret that I abused alcohol and drugs, everyone knows now."

"Some aspects should never have been called a secret." He grimaces in agreement.

"You know that I was addicted for a lot of years before I sought help, years I was married and was secretary of labour and various other positions of importance."

"I was very good at hiding CJ, Jenny never knew, and The President would never break my confidence."

He looks down into his cup then places it on the table in front of them.

"Jenny never knew, we would go on living our lives like normal, except I would have a drink at 9 and progress with a pill at 10 till it got worse by the time I got home, and Jenny just thought this happy person was just me, on a high of life after a good day at work and we'd go upstairs and have sex before going to bed and I'd tell her we had a couple of celebratory drinks down the road after work for such a good day and she'd believe me, I just changed the lie week after week."

"The whole time I was either drunk or high, or both, Mallory was conceived on a night just like that."

"I was always drunk in college and when I was young, I was Boston Irish Catholic, it was almost expected of you." In five minutes CJ thought she'd probably heard every sordid detail of his life, but then again.

"I knew if I kissed you and you asked me upstairs and I said yes it would lead to the bedroom, and I didn't want to start something I couldn't finish, I said that because I was nervous I wouldn't be able to perform because I've never had sex and been sober."

"Was it good?" she asks and he doesn't see it coming.

"CJ." He can't believe she just asked that question, is there a generation gap here?

"I don't want details Leo, a simple yes or no will suffice."

"Yes."

"Well you're in for a helluva good time then."

"Because you're good in bed?" he teases.

"Well there is that." She says getting some of her own back. "Alcohol inhibits the ability to perform." She says moving into kiss him again.

"So am I in for a good time then? "  He requests.

"You will not be the same Leo McGarry tomorrow, you may not be able to walk, speak coherent sentences, you may just die of pleasure."

"Is that a guarantee?"

"With me and you it is."

"CJ I want you to know that when I'm with you I feel so alive, like I'm 10 years younger."

"Me too." She silences the talk with another deep kiss.

~*~

CJ can't remember starting out this slow, not since high school, since then nobody had wanted to sit through the preview, just go straight to the good stuff. She's loving every minute of it, nobody takes their time anymore to really get to know her, it shouldn't be like that, but she doesn't want to lower it by saying it's a lost art form.

"It's a crime you have been single for so long after your divorce, what is wrong with the women in this time?" she wonders between kisses along his jaw line.

He gently brings her head back so their mouths can meet again and she relishes in the taste of the coffee on his tongue and lavishes it as his tongue explores every part of her mouth once, twice and three times till she's lost count. Her hands slither through his hair and press down those on the back of his neck, which have stood up to attention.

And it doesn't go unnoticed as his hand creeps down to her knee but stops before going any further. She gently pulls out of the kiss, their lips staying together till the last possible moment, and while she regains the air that she has deprived herself of for the last couple of minutes in favor of kissing him, she whispers to him, taking in his scent from below his ear.

"It's Ok to touch me, you won't hurt me." And he sighs out of relief like she has lifted something from his shoulders which has been troubling him and he makes a happy little 'humph' sound before telling her

"I've been out of the game for too long."

"You haven't forgotten have you?" she smiles encouragingly.

"It's like falling off a bike." He muses and they smile at each other, because the President did exactly that not a few years ago on a bike owned by Leo.

"Leo you are such a gentleman, it's been so long since anyone has taken the time to really get to know me."

"Are my methods archaic?" he kisses her gently.

"You methods should be in a book that every man must read and follow."

"And how is it you've been single so long in this town?"

"I throw things away and that stops now." He tracks a path along her jaw line and runs his hands up her arms.

"You have big feet." He whispers in her ear.

"How the hell do you know that?" she laughs into his shoulder.

"The President told me your feet are as big as your elbow to your wrist, you have very long arms."

She doesn't reply instead letting herself get lost again in the feeling of his lips across her neck, his inadvertent breathing in her ear is heightening the sensation.

"You've got a birthmark CJ, here behind your earlobe." She goes immediately from relaxed to self-conscious. "I've never noticed before, you always have it covered by your hair, it looks like a tiny heart." And he kisses it ever so gently.

"I've never told anyone it's there."

"Don't it's my little discovery." She can feel him smiling.

"You know we spend 90 days of our lives kissing." She knows he's retracing his steps back to her mouth now.

"I could kiss you for the rest of my life." And her heart does a little spin for a second.

"Mrs. Bartlet told me that one, I told her I hadn't kissed anyone in 2200 days and I was batting well below the national average." It's enough to make him laugh and lose contact with her skin.

"Let's see if we can bring up that average then." He says as his lips move back to their intended target.

She thinks maybe this isn't right, she hasn't felt this good with a man in so long and she's being selfish and not giving pleasure back. But she's knows he's enjoying this as much as she is or more and she chides herself for not expecting more from him, just more of the same, or at least waiting and seeing, and for feeling guilty for extracting pleasure from this.

Their faces flush and their lips are well on the way to being swollen as they take a short break letting their eyes and hands do the expressing while they catch back their breath. She takes the opportunity to take off his tie and undo his top button and she think how it is a crime that kissing can't be more like CPR where you can breath for another person. But she concedes that he has breathed the life back into her and her into him.

They gaze intently at one another as she slides her hands between the gaps in his shirt buttons from his belt up, her fingers making first contact with the flesh below his neck.

He watches as she undoes button after button gently as if each one might explode if it isn't opened in a particular way. She runs her hands down his arms as he did to her not long ago, pushing the shirt off as she goes and tells him he has average sized feet.

CJ refocus' her arms down his chest and lets her eyes wander over every inch of him. She spots scars and blemishes and wrinkles of skin each one earnt and deserved in it's own right, it's like a visual novel of his life. He's imperfectly perfect.

"You're beautiful." She whispers and she thinks he might flinch at being and man and being called beautiful, instead he takes his right hand and traces it from the base of her neck to the V where her blouse buttons meet.

Tired of the constrictions of the lounge she looks at him and says, "Come to bed with me."

Their mouths duel and tongues clash again and they stand from the lounge and she pulls the shirt out of his pants letting it fall over the back of the lounge. The intensity has stepped up a level since she mentioned bed and their kisses are more passionate, more hurried this time, as if this is the last chance they have and it's about to be taken away from them any minute.

She silently curses as she feels his hands move up across her hips and towards her breasts, she knows he's growing in confidence and comfort with the situation but she'll have to break it off if they're going to make the short walk to her bedroom. CJ links her pinkie with his and leads him to her room.

She watches as he undoes the buttons to her blouse while they stand at the foot of the bed, she slides it out of her pants and off her back leaving her lacy white bra exposed. He takes a moment to drink in the scene like climbing a mountain and then enjoying the view.

He moves in gently pressing his lips and flicking his tongue along her collarbone and breastplate and slides his hands up her stomach.

Her knees go weak and she gasps her next breath of air as his lips move in one beat to the extremity of her exposed breast and his hands move from her stomach to graze of her nipples sheathed in lace.

He looks up, afraid something is wrong, he's been doing that exact thing for years but never got a response like that before.

"How did you do that?" she says trying to resume her breathing to the heightened pace it was at before his touch.

"It's the element of surprise, you were anticipating my movements, you knew the path my hands would take, and you weren't expecting me to move so soon."

"I'm going to die tonight if you keep doing things like that." She smiled.

"Can we take this off?" he asks running his hands from the side of her breasts around to the bra hook. She remembers her second boyfriend ripping five of her bras, he never noticed the trouble she went to, to wear nice underwear, he was always in too much of a hurry to do it properly or even be gentlemen enough to ask.

She nods and he unsnaps the hooks gently pushing one strap off her shoulder at a time, brushing her hair along with it and then pulling it off her altogether. He lets it flutter to rest on the floor not taking his eyes from exploring her. She's so obviously aroused from his earlier touch she can't help but become further as he digests her.

'I'm speechless." It comes out as crackled whisper and something about it makes her want him now more than ever. It's so honest and genuine in her life full of political bullshit.

She reaches to kiss him again, pressing her chest against his, moaning her approval at the intimate contact, his tongue knows her mouth now and it seeks out her favorite spots. His hands spray across her bare back and up to the sides of her breasts.

She reaches for his belt buckle, which has been pressing into her, but he breaks away and stops her before she can get the excess belt out of the first loop.

"It's a good suit I don't want to have to get it dry cleaned." He admits sheepishly.

He steps out of his pants and she does the same letting the crepe material fall to the floor, it never needs ironing anyway, he places his pants over the back of the bed.

CJ leads him onto her bed, sitting first before lying on her side and moving into make contact with him. She guides his leg in between hers and his hands run a path up her leg, across her hip, the dip of her waste and across her breast.

Moving her head down she tease her finger across his nipple barely making contact in her outward in fondle.

"That's so good CJ." He moans approvingly thrusting his hips into her so for the first time she can feel his erection and she's compelled to replace her fingers with her tongue swirling it left and right and finally taking him into her mouth, using her teeth to encourage him harder.

She's about to move to work magic on his right nipple when she feels his pinkie circle left then right across her nipple. He rolls her onto his back swirling his tongue around her left then right, right then left and he makes her dizzy when his pinkie reaches for her other breast and works in the opposite direction.

"Leo, your hands." She moans, and if she could she would try to comprehend just what he was so worried about earlier performance wise.

"Leo." She moans again throwing her head from side to side as if trying to ward of some terrible pain, instead it is almost unbearable pleasure. She recognizes the feel of his teeth coaxing her nipple to a higher peak and this thumb and forefinger doing the same.

Her heart is beating madly and she can tell the familiar rush of warmth in waves to her pelvis. She knows her panties are wetter now that when she gets them out of the spin cycle. He moves his lips up to hers again, leaving behind his hands to carry on their work on her swollen breasts. But he is there only momentarily before pulling away suddenly like he had been bitten by something.

"Oh God CJ I don't have any birth control." The look on his face is one of almost horror; it's usually her horror when she realizes she has nothing, after all it's always been left up to her in the past.

"It's Ok Leo, I take the Pill, we're all right." She grabs his hand guiding it over her navel and just under the elastic of her panties.

"I'm supposed to ask about AIDS and STD's, god what right to I have, I might as well as you for your entire medical file that's how much I feel I'm invading your privacy." He can't look at her.

She lifts his chin so he looks at her again. "It's Ok you have to protect yourself, I have a test every time I have a pap smear, get all the horrible things over at once." She smiles warmly at him trying to convey it is Ok.

"I'm clean too." He tells her and she moves into resume kissing him.

"That's the first and last time we'll ever have to mention it." She rolls him onto his back.

CJ meanders her hands down his chest to the elastic band of cotton boxers and snakes her hands under till she reaches the boundaries of his hair.

"CJ lower." He moans approvingly and she takes it as a sign to continue. She bumps into his base and works her hand up exploring the length of him. He bucks his hips closer to her, but he can't get any further into her hand.

The ironic thing to come out of having too many selfish boyfriends is she gives a pretty good blowjob.

"This isn't working." He groans though clearly it is, he's about to break out of his cotton boxers. To her surprise he drags his boxers down to his knees.

She takes the opportunity to straddle him and pull them right off. She takes a moment to look him over and take in the heavy male scent.

"You can't...........I'm not that young anymore CJ." Her lips are moving dangerously closer as they blaze a trail up his inner thigh. "I'm not used to this I'm usually the one giving pleasure."

"That's a crime Leo, sex is about both partners." She says sliding her hands up and down his thighs breathing on his erection.

She wraps her hand around the base and works gently from the underside up. First gently sucking and nipping at his balls, massaging them gently with her other hand.

She can hear him grabbing at the sheets next to him.

Above her he hisses in a breath at the pleasure she is giving. She trails her tongue up the sensitive underside and adopts his methodology swirling her tongue left then right, right then left taking him into her mouth swirling her lips up and down and around. She can feel him begin to excrete in her mouth and she thinks he's fortunate not to have to take anything artificial.

"CJ...good." she smiles thinking she's achieved one of his objectives, the inability to put together a coherent sentence. She can feel him getting larger and harder in her mouth.

"You have to stop CJ." His hand reaches her shoulder, trying to drag her back to his mouth; she takes off her panties on the way up.

"Tonight is about you too." He turns her over onto her back and moves between her thighs opening them for her in one move.

"Leo." She breathes as he moves his way along her thighs kissing, nipping and sucking. His breath teases her as it hits her sex time and time over.

Her cries echo through her apartment as his warm tongue enters her opening in one purposeful thrust, his thumb caresses across her clit in synchronization. He smiles knowing that surprise has worked again and her reaction is better than anyone he's ever been with.

"Have you died yet?" He questions in response to her earlier comment once he's bought her teetering to the edge of the pleasurable fall.

He doesn't allow the opportunity of anything more coherent than a long groan as he positions and enters her, it's in contrast to the Leo of the beginning of the night who hesitated to touch her intimately without her gentle encouragement. "How could you possibly think you weren't..?" She breathes as he stops enjoying her warm around him, again he cuts her off beginning to thrust in and out raining tender kisses across her face as he brings them closer to orgasm.

"You've come out of your shell." CJ comments after Leo's rolled them so she's on top, he takes a moment to absorb the comment and stops meeting her thrust for thrust, stilling their movements.

"It's you." He concludes sitting up to kiss her before rolling them back over again

"Don't hold back." He encourages her changing his angle slightly, watching her face as her expression changes from dangling on the edge to the flooding wash of the orgasm through her body. With a few successive thrusts he follows her blissful ride, his head coming to rest on her shoulder.

~*~

"Are you going to stay the night?" CJ asks curling herself contentedly around Leo. Casually she has made sure her leg is swung over his and a gentle arm has wrapped around him to prevent a fast getaway.

"It must have been all right then." There's a sense of relief in his voice as he pulls her into him closer.

"What makes you say that?" Her head glides up from where it's been resting against him.

"If it wasn't I was sure you were going to ask if you could ring me a cab." There's a small smile that slips past his guard.

"You are the most considerate, gentle, thorough man I've been with." CJ confesses, causing Leo to shrink under the complimentary words.

"Did you mean what you said about not throwing things away anymore?" Leo asks carefully as CJ's eyes ask for more. "I could really fall for you."

"I already am."


End file.
